Our NY/NJ/NY Friend Fest TR!!!

[mommy2mrb]

Our Trip to NY began with a visit with Jim's boss and his family out on Long Island!
This was something I had been wanting/needing to do the past year! Jim's boss Mike is still dealing with a lot of guilt in sending Jim to Haiti, so we needed to make some good, happy memories with them!
We spent three days with them, their kids, a very nice lunch at the office where we were able to meet everyone and thank them all for their support too, everyone had so many wonderful things to say about my Jim, many made sure to come in to meet us that day which was very touching!
Lots of swimming, a couple boat rides, relaxing and tons of food!

Megan made fast friends with their two dog's...Black one is Rex, white one is Uey (you-e) who followed her around the whole time!

Megan with Katie...the oldest DD

The Memorial they made at the office courtyard for Jim...

dinner with the Ryan's...their nephew's Eddie and Jack at dinner

swimming in the canal with the boys and Ryan's DS Mikey!

low tide - standing on the sand bar

we really enjoyed spending time with the Ryan's , their families and everyone at the office...making our new happy memories with them and for them to see us doing good helped everyone with healing....we know Jim was looking down on us!


next up New Jersey ......

 

[mommy2mrb]

Our next adventure was taking the train from Long Island to NJ!
took about 2 hours, but so much better than driving in NY for me!

we spent three days with our friends in NJ....we met when Megan and their oldest DD were 7 months old when we moved to NJ and have stayed great friends all this time visiting back and forth every couple of years

spent the first day at the pool.....Megan with Abigail and Allison

the next day we went to the shore....was beautiful !

we hung out most of the time and did a bunch of swimming and more eating!!

then Wed Melissa and Abigail went to NYC with us to see Wicked!...side story, this was the third attempt to see this show....I had purchased tickets to see it in San Francisco on Jan 13, 2010....of course we didn't get to see it due to the earthquake in Haiti and they wouldn't let me reschedule the show....we tried again that summer with friends and we got to see the first act before Megan got sick so we missed the second act, did get to hear the music though....third time's a charm, we got to see the whole show! It's AMAZING!!!

we got checked into our hotel and headed to lunch at Ellen's StarDust Diner...this is a really fun place, food was good, all the wait staff are "Broadway Hopefull's" who sing during their shifts....our waitress "Punky"

after the show, we said our good-byes....Melissa had to drive back home and we were pretty tired, so headed back to our hotel for the night and got a good night's sleep!

Thursday we did a bit of sight seeing on a bus tour through town

we were at a stop light when I noticed this sign on Avenue of the America's...guess who was thinking of us..

and a little shopping at Disney

did some other walking around Time Square, before heading back to our hotel to rest, get cleaned up and headed out to dinner and then to see "The Lion King"

 

[mommy2mrb]

Lion King!!! we were so excited to see this show....we love the show in WDW and knew it was going to be so much more wonderful!!

the show was amazing!!! the music, dancing, Rafiki was a hoot!

Friday we met a special lady to us....Cherylann Gengel, her daughter Britney was also in the Hotel Montana in Haiti, they are the family who are building the orphange in her memory in Haiti....we had breakfast and talked a lot about Jim, Brit and the building process! it was great to finally meet her!!
we then headed out after our good-bye's to Cherylann and did more walking, shopping and walking somemore around town!

Saturday was our DISmeet with Buffy, Cindy and Pam along with their friends and family!

Cindy and her friend with their girls met us at our hotel, had a bite to eat and we headed out to Time Square....went to the Disney Store where we met up with Pam and her girls....sorry not sharing photos of Buffy's family, she is private with her family and for some reason didn't take one of Pam and her girls ....put here are Megan, with Emily (Cindy's DD) Hannah and Grace their friends

then went to lunch....this was a whole big issue that day, I had made the ressie's at a italian restaurant who opened up for us....the food was okay, but since Buffy and her family were running late due to traffic getting into the city, the owner was giving me the evil eye....we ordered and where almost done eating when I got a text from Buffy stating they had gotten hit, thankfully they weren't hurt, but had to wait for the police.....I decided to pay the owner for his "time" and we got out of their pretty quickly!

We headed up to the American Girl Store, Build-a-bear, Rockefeller center and then over to Ellen's StarDust Diner for some yummy milkshakes and fries with Cindy and her crew, did a bit more shopping in Time Square before they needed to head back home on the train....

I texted Buffy to see where they were and Megan and I headed back up to Rockefeller Center....boy did we put the miles on this day....to meet up with them at the Nintendo store....then took the subway down to the financial district for a great steak dinner, walked around a bit down there and took subway back up to Grand Central, the platform was really hot and steamy, was quite the adventure for Megan who had never been on the subway before!

we said our goodnights to Buffy and headed back to the hotel...they went back to Time Square for a bit!

the next morning we met them for breakfast (they were at the same hotel) then headed up to Disney store with them....then onto the Museam of Natural History for a bit before Megan got tired and hungry....we had so much fun meeting up with them all and were touched they all came into the city to meet up with us!

Monday we had a quite, lazy morning, the days were getting hotter and muggier, so we decided to go the wax museum and met a few "people"

got lunch at the McDonalds on 42nd and headed back to the hotel to cool off and get ready for our shopping spree, dinner and harbor cruise at AmericanGirl

it was a fun night and our last night in the city....we went back to our room and got to bed.....the next morning we finished packing up, checked out and headed off to breakfast, visited the library...what a beautiful place

before heading to the airport.....no issue's flight on time and easy ....a beautiful sunset to end our trip....

we were happy to be home.....loved our trip, meeting friends, catching up with old ones and making many new happy memories

 

[VBAndrea]

Fabulous photos and it looks like you all kept really busy while there! Thanks for sharing all the pics with us. With all these cross country flights you're getting in this year I think perhaps you need to relocate to the East coast!

 

[mommy2mrb]

Fabulous photos and it looks like you all kept really busy while there! Thanks for sharing all the pics with us. With all these cross country flights you're getting in this year I think perhaps you need to relocate to the East coast!

thanks Andrea...only a small portion of my photos...didn't want to overwhelm the boards
we lived on the east coast for years! loved it except the weather! will be staying on the west coast due to family for now....but you never know what the future will hold when Megan grows up!

 

[aboveH20]

Whoa! You packed a lot into your time in NY and NJ. So glad you saw Lion King and Wicked. I went to NYC on 7/13 (American Girl store, Disney Store, Mary Poppins and dinner at The View). I wasn't that impressed with Mary Poppins -- Lion King and Wicked are sooooo much better.

Must have given you the chills when you saw the Haiti sign.

You're brave to ride the subway. Not brave as in you'll get mugged, but brave as in knowing where to find that stations, what's uptown or downtown, etc. I usually just walk.

My husband and I are going back in August to take our son out to dinner for his birthday (he works in the "Hershey building" in Times Square) and to see Billy Elliot. That's what I had originally planned to see but got Disneyfied into going to Mary Poppins. I had forgotten about Ellen's Stardust Diner. Maybe we'll try to hit it for lunch.

NYC -- a great place to visit, a great place to leave behind.

 

[morgansmom2000]

Looks like you had a great time! Wish I could have been there. Next time for sure!

 

[KatMark]

What a wonderful trip, Lisa. Meeting new/old friends, helping to comfort one another, etc. I love the dedication to Jim!

The pictures are great. I've never been to New York, but hope to get there one of these days.

 

[wdwmickey]

Looks like you had a wonderful time I especially love the picture with Megan's hair blowing in the wind!

 

[mommy2mrb]

Whoa! You packed a lot into your time in NY and NJ. So glad you saw Lion King and Wicked. I went to NYC on 7/13 (American Girl store, Disney Store, Mary Poppins and dinner at The View). I wasn't that impressed with Mary Poppins -- Lion King and Wicked are sooooo much better.

Must have given you the chills when you saw the Haiti sign.

You're brave to ride the subway. Not brave as in you'll get mugged, but brave as in knowing where to find that stations, what's uptown or downtown, etc. I usually just walk.

My husband and I are going back in August to take our son out to dinner for his birthday (he works in the "Hershey building" in Times Square) and to see Billy Elliot. That's what I had originally planned to see but got Disneyfied into going to Mary Poppins. I had forgotten about Ellen's Stardust Diner. Maybe we'll try to hit it for lunch.

NYC -- a great place to visit, a great place to leave behind.

we did have a lot of down time too, esp when it got warmer!
sorry you didn't like Mary Poppins, we saw it here in Seattle in May and LOVED it!!!
the only reason we rode the subway was Buffy's DH was with us and knew pretty much where to go....we stayed up top the rest of the trip!
Billy Elliot is another show we would love to see! Ellen's is a fun and LOUD place, its not great for conversations though!
the Haiti sign was a chill...didn't notice any of the other signs!
We love NYC to visit too, Megan said she'd love to live there someday though!

Looks like you had a great time! Wish I could have been there. Next time for sure!

We missed having you with us Jennifer....we will get back there someday!

What a wonderful trip, Lisa. Meeting new/old friends, helping to comfort one another, etc. I love the dedication to Jim!

The pictures are great. I've never been to New York, but hope to get there one of these days.

it was a wonderful trip! the dedication for Jim was there way to help the office with their grief, they even had a memorial there for everyone (my FIL and BIL went) since WA was too far for all of them to come

You need to go to NY someday! its full of fun and energy!

 

[JJ&JHsmom]

Lisa, looks like you and Megan had a great trip! Now you have to scrap that trip too! Wish I could have met up with you, but it wasn't in the plans for this year. At the last minute my sister asked me to take her two kids with me too!

Cassey

 

[Lisa]

Lisa, you got some great photos. I've never seen Rockefeller Center without ice in all the times I've been there.

Jim's boss's house looks like where my Grandparents lived in Freeport.

I am glad you and Megan had a good time.

 

[fulseasmama]

Wow! Looks like you all had a great trip. Wonderful pictures...I especially love the wax museum pics. For some reason I absolutely LOVE wax museums. Really looks like you had such a nice time. I hope the rest of your summer is going great.

On a side note I am so happy for you that you will be able to join Judy and her family during Lisa's wish trip. You must be so excited. Can't wait to hear all about your plans...is a PTR in the works?

Take care...

 

[babynala]

What a nice trip that you girls had - visiting and making new memories. The memorial tree in Mike's yard is so beautiful. The cruise must have been fun and I'm glad you enjoyed all the shows.

Thanks for sharing your pictures.

 

[Kathy Z]

What a special trip for you and Megan. Your report just drew me in. Tears came to my eyes when I saw the pictures of the memorial to Jim in the office courtyard. Thanks for the many wonderful photos. My very favorite one of Megan is the one where she is kneeling down and holding the program for The Lion King. I grew up in eastern PA, in a small town on the Delaware a bit north of Philadelphia. I miss my siblings, their families and cousins but not the humidity.

 

[mommy2mrb]

Lisa, looks like you and Megan had a great trip! Now you have to scrap that trip too! Wish I could have met up with you, but it wasn't in the plans for this year. At the last minute my sister asked me to take her two kids with me too!

Cassey

We did! yes I do have to scrap...but only about 150 photos and I'm going to use the same color theme all the way through! Sorry you couldn't come into see us...next trip!

Lisa, you got some great photos. I've never seen Rockefeller Center without ice in all the times I've been there.

Jim's boss's house looks like where my Grandparents lived in Freeport.

I am glad you and Megan had a good time.

Thanks Lisa, the Rock does look different in the summer! They live in West Islip right on the bay!

Wow! Looks like you all had a great trip. Wonderful pictures...I especially love the wax museum pics. For some reason I absolutely LOVE wax museums. Really looks like you had such a nice time. I hope the rest of your summer is going great.

On a side note I am so happy for you that you will be able to join Judy and her family during Lisa's wish trip. You must be so excited. Can't wait to hear all about your plans...is a PTR in the works?

Take care...

The wax museum was fun, they are really nicely done, some look life like!
we've been hanging out since we got home, but hope to do some day trips coming up!
We are really excited to join Judy and her family for Lisa's trip will spend a couple days with them and hope to get to visit GKTW one afternoon too!
I'm not doing a PTR since I'm not really planning anything we are doing QS and the only real "scheduled plan" will be MNSSHP! will probably post something when we get home though!
Hope your summer is going great...DLR is coming up fast, have a great time!
Hugs to your little sweeties!

What a nice trip that you girls had - visiting and making new memories. The memorial tree in Mike's yard is so beautiful. The cruise must have been fun and I'm glad you enjoyed all the shows.

Thanks for sharing your pictures.

Yes the memorial is very sweet! to touching they did that! The cruise was about an hour, but nice to see the city from the water! The shows were great, if you haven't already been to them, you need to see them!

What a special trip for you and Megan. Your report just drew me in. Tears came to my eyes when I saw the pictures of the memorial to Jim in the office courtyard. Thanks for the many wonderful photos. My very favorite one of Megan is the one where she is kneeling down and holding the program for The Lion King. I grew up in eastern PA, in a small town on the Delaware a bit north of Philadelphia. I miss my siblings, their families and cousins but not the humidity.

Thanks Kathy, hope all is good with you and your DH!
Jim's boss and family are so wonderful and the support from everyone at the office was termendous!
I always take a photo of her with the program since you can't take photos during the shows, have to have something to scrapbook!
We lived in Shawnee on the Delaware PA (1995-1997) Flemington NJ (2000-2001) and Plymouth Meeting PA (2002) we went to Phlly quiet a lot! loved it, but your right not the humidity!

 

[DisneyBarlans]

Great TR Lisa!! Love all your pics! Wish I could've made it to NY, but I just couldn't swing it this year. Next time you're in GA let me know for sure!

 

[mommy2mrb]

Great TR Lisa!! Love all your pics! Wish I could've made it to NY, but I just couldn't swing it this year. Next time you're in GA let me know for sure!

Sorry you couldn't make it up either! looks like we are missing each other in WDW by a month too

we might get back to GA next year....going to Charlotte to visit friends and then maybe to GA to see Mickeyteacher and we have two more families we've known forever that live around Atlanta, how far are you from Atlanta?

 

[DisneyBarlans]

I'm in the suburbs of Atlanta-definately let me know the next time you'll be here!!

 

[morgansmom2000]

Sorry you couldn't make it up either! looks like we are missing each other in WDW by a month too

Um, looks like Anne and I will be there at the same time though...(Unless I've added wrong, which is entirely possible).